Background: Management of adolescent and young adults (AYAs) cancer is very heterogeneous. In the case of lymphomas, outcomes are mostly favorable but there is still room for improvement. Design: We retrospectively collected the pattern of care of all institutional 13- to 25-year-old AYAs patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) diagnosed in the Rhône-Alpes region between the years 2000 and 2005. Management, including adherence to Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs), and long-term survival were analyzed by comparing adult units (AU) and pediatric units (PU). Results: 278 patients were included: 198 treated for HL (median age of 19 years), 80 treated for NHL (median age of 20 years). Among them, 74% were managed in AU and 26% in PU. The median time between diagnosis and starting treatment was significantly lower in PU than in AU. Sixty-five patients (23%) were included in clinical trials, mostly in AU. Five-year overall survival was 96% for HL [14 deaths, median follow-up 91 months (9-180)] and 90% for NHL [nine deaths, median follow-up 80 months (3-180)]. Secondary cancers occurred for 2% (n = 3) of HL patients and for none in NHL. Other major late complications included cardiovascular accidents in two patients and fatal pulmonary fibrosis in one patient. Major differences in chemotherapy and radiotherapy use are emphasized. Global management conformed to CPGs by 56%. Conclusions: Important differences between adult and pediatric management were reported, without any impact on survival. A few patients can be included in clinical trials: Homogeneity in management could improve specific care for AYAs.
Keywords: adolescent; audit; guidelines; lymphoma; medical practices.